Margerum Chenin Blanc 2009

At Uncorked Ventures, we can appreciate companies which are willing to do things a bit differently. We opened our doors in January of 2010, in the middle of the great recession which was hardly the safest time to sell a luxury good like wine.

Margerum Wine Company started, as so many great wineries do, as a garage project by someone already affiliated in the wine industry. Owner and Proprietor Doug Margerum worked closely with local wineries because he already owned what is the best wine shop in Santa Barbara, Wine Cask.

While many wineries in Santa Barbara and the greater Central Coast winemaking community have taken advantage of the media and commercial hit which is the movie Sideways to sell more Pinot Noir, even if they did not previously produce the varietal, Margerum has avoided the temptation. The winery is well known locally in Santa Barbara for its crisp and clean white wines as well as its red wines made from multiple vineyards. Their Uber Syrah is produced from the best Syrah vineyards in and around Santa Barbara.

The 2009 Chenin Blanc which we selected for our Wine Exploration Club customers in June 2011 was, we thought, a great example of the varietal. This is exactly the type of Chenin Blanc we like to pour for people who tell us, they only like Chardonnay. The higher acidity, nuanced flavors and crisp, clean mouthfeel make it a great pairing with seafood and summer salads. Lastly, with production of 100 cases, it fit well with our mission which is to find great wines, from small producers for our customers.